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Author Topic: bubble eyed cant eat  (Read 1150 times)
forkoji
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bubble eyed cant eat
« on: February 10, 2010, 09:01:19 PM »
I got two bubble eyed goldfish this summer, a gold one and a black one. The black one is growing and doing great. But the gold one is not- his bubbles have grown so big they get sucked into his mouth when he breathes. He looks like he is always gasping for water. Also he can hardly eat- his bubbles push the food away when they're sucked in front of his mouth. I'm concerned that he cant breathe or get enough to eat. What should I do? I've tried feeding them cooked peas, thinking the size of the peas would help- they loved them- but still, Koji couldnt really get any. This is really distressing.
Should I pop one of the bubbles? I know this is traumatizing and he could get an infection, but is it worth a try if he can't breathe/eat?
Help me help Koji!
Thanks
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Katarine
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Re: bubble eyed cant eat
« Reply #1 on: February 10, 2010, 10:28:38 PM »
Though I dont know much about goldfish... I have a sneaky suspicion you shouldnt pop his eye.. That could lead to worse problems than an infection. Ummmmmmh..... oh dear... I would suggest hand feeding ur little guy, just move the bubbles out of the way and... i dunno... hold him while he eats? I'm really unsure of your situation.. I can only offer up what I would try doing..
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Nossie
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Re: bubble eyed cant eat
« Reply #2 on: February 11, 2010, 04:30:10 AM »
That sounds like a pretty big problem. I heard about lots of troubles this variety can have because of their eye bubbles, but not this, ever! o_O

Are the bubbles of your golden fish much bigger than on the black one? Because if that's not the case, there might be something else bothering your little Koji Sad

I honestly don't have much experience with these bubble eyes. But I think it could be adviceable to read about them in some books or something if they need any special care!
I wouldn't think that piercing the bubbles would be a very good solution. It might hurt your fish more than help him... for example, he could die just by the stress it would put on him.  And if not that, an infection would probably get him.

Be patient! Observe and take good care of him (:
I hope he'll be fine.
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forkoji
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Re: bubble eyed cant eat
« Reply #3 on: February 11, 2010, 11:36:11 AM »
Thanks guys. I've been googling the **** out of it and researching alot, but I can't find any other cases of something like this.

Nossie: Yeah, the bubbles are huge. Koji's are at least twice as big as Mommy's.

I'm trying to train them now to get used to me (my hand in the tank) so that I can try to hand feed him.
I've also called a couple aquarium stores around town- one had no idea what to do, and the other suggested putting sinking pellets in a dish for him to eat out of... Although I really don't know if that would help much in this case.
Neither of the people I spoke to had heard of this happening, but they could see the possibility because the breeding can lead to big deformities.... The owner of the second store I called mentioned popping the bubble...
Maybe I should take him in and show him to her?

Thank you for your replies
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Katarine
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Re: bubble eyed cant eat
« Reply #4 on: February 11, 2010, 01:07:16 PM »
Try getting them used to your hand. Just make sure you wash it thoroughly before, as oiils can stress out your fish, and soap is really harmful. if you can, use bits of peas, which are bigger so your fish can see them, or sinking pellets, and set them in your hand and just let it hover in the tank until your fish notices. I'm really sorry to hear about your fish... but i stand by this: do not pop his eye out. Like Nossie said, it could cause infection and/or stress, but he'll also lose an eye, whic'll make seeing the food even harder (these guys dont have the greatest sight...).

Please be patient. I wish you all the best!
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Nicole
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Re: bubble eyed cant eat
« Reply #5 on: February 11, 2010, 08:00:36 PM »
I don't have much experience with bubble eyes, but have you tried holding him still or getting him to swim to the surface and feeding him with crushed flakes and an eye dropper or somesuch?  He might not be happy about it at first, but it might get the food inside his little mouth.
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forkoji
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Re: bubble eyed cant eat
« Reply #6 on: February 11, 2010, 10:33:42 PM »
I haven't tried holding him to feed him. And putting the food in my palm is a good idea- I was wondering how I'd get him to see the food between my fingers- the food is so small as it is. I was able to push some pea pieces into his mouth this morning Smiley

Just a note: the bubble eyed goldfish have fluid filled sacs (sounds beautiful huh Tongue)  under their eyes, where the little fish cheeks are- like puffy cheeks. They're not like telescope goldfish that have huge eyes. So if the bubble is to pop, and sometimes one will from random trauma or from other fish, the fish's eye isn't harmed, and over time the bubble does grow back---

Thanks for the advice yall!
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Nossie
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Re: bubble eyed cant eat
« Reply #7 on: February 12, 2010, 08:05:27 AM »
Another thing about popping the bubble under his eye, you probably know already that it'll grow back but then smaller than the other bubble, which might take away his balance, and make him look a bit less attractive. It might just help him eat and breathe, but... you know d:

Glad to see that you got it working! If you'll hand feed him from now on, I'd like to tell you about these food sticks there are for koi and the like, maybe that would be something? You could always split them in half or something to make them the right size for him Wink  Did you hear about algae wafers? Made by hikari, they're flat, sinking foods for bottom eating fish, but I heard that they're just as tasty for goldfish (: You could try finding some of those and try them out!
They are at least bigger than normal pellets so he should be able to notice! (:
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